"Civil Rights Revolution" - Assignment Example

Civil Rights Revolution The 1960s were the golden years of the civil rights movement; the civil rights movements had gained significant traction in the early 1960s and it seemed inevitable that all Americans would be considered equal in no time. The rise of more vocal and charismatic individuals such as martin Luther King Jnr ensured that the minority groups became better organized in their clamor for equal rights. Furthermore, these leaders undertook to organize nationwide activities that were more effective in capturing the nation’s attention and imagination.

This thus made it relatively difficult for the government to ignore the minorities anymore. Besides these minority groups’ leaders, the men that were in charge in the White House played a significant role in ensuring the civil rights movement’s success. Prior to his death, John F. Kennedy had been viewed as a keen ear to the minorities’ plight and probably would have instituted the necessary legislations that would have afforded everyone the same rights, had he not been assassinated. Once Lyndon Johnson took over office, he acted fast so as to institute measures and legislations that helped further the civil rights movement.

His call for the end of segregation and implementation of laws that permitted the minorities to vote essentially brought the end to the golden era of the civil rights movements. On the other hand, a few events prolonged the fight for equal rights. The assassinations of John F. Kennedy as well as Martin Luther King, Jnr. were such events. Each of these men was an integral part of the struggle and their deaths significantly hampered the efforts. Furthermore, the unhinging determination of government officials such as Bull Connor, who were vehemently against equality, ensured that the any attempts by civil rights movements were quashed when they arose.

Such brutality dissuaded a large portion of the minorities’ population from participating actively in the struggle. Works CitedCarpenter, Gerald, and Donald Peters, eds. Echoes of the Future: The Voices of America Since 1945. Long Beach, NY: Whittier Publishing Co., 1995.